Falling in Deep Collection Box Set

by Pauline Creeden

  “Oh, god, Laur. I never thought they’d talk to anyone else first. Jesus, I’m such an ass. I’m sorry.”

  “I just came upstairs. I guess maybe they called here, but they never called the bar. I would have called, Eric. I hope you know that.”

  “I know. I’m sorry. I can’t say it enough. And you still haven’t heard from them?”

  “No, but they may be trying to call now. Before I hang up though, what did they say?”

  “Ma said they told her they found the boat and the crew, everyone but Tom. The crew didn’t remember anything at all and had no idea how they ended up so far north. I mean that isn’t where Tom normally heads, is it?”

  “No, that’s pretty far up. And it’s too close to land for them to be fishing it,” I said thinking about the island I had struck from my memory years ago.

  “That’s what I thought. I guess no one knows what happened to Tom, so they’re checking the island, Manana Island, and the bay. They’re looking over Smutty Nose, too.”

  The name of the small island Eric listed last always made me laugh, but not today. Today I just wanted him to keep talking so I could avoid being alone with any thoughts about where Tom may be.

  “Anything else?” I asked.

  “Well, nothing yet, but they said the storm may have washed him over. But that’s all. You should get off the phone now. They’ll be calling soon. And don’t worry about Jeanie and Ma. I’ll call them now and let them know what’s going on.”

  I hung up the phone with a numb hand. My whole body felt dead at the moment. But the sudden ring stirred me and I reached for the receiver.

  “Hello.”

  “Is this Laura Flynn? This is Petty Officer Joe Wilks calling from the United States Coast Guard.”

  “Yes, I’m Laura. You found the Colleen Marie?” I asked as if I didn’t already know the answer.

  “Yes, ma’am. We did. She was off the coast of Monhegan Island in Maine. Are you familiar with the area?”

  “I am actually. What condition was the boat in?”

  “The boat? The boat is fine. No damage at all.”

  “And the crew? Minus my husband, of course.”

  “The crew is fine as well. No injuries but an odd amnesia situation. No one seems to remember anything after leaving the wharf yesterday. But your husband, Ms. Flynn, is the reason I called.”

  “I know. He’s missing. I understand. I’m sure you’re doing what you can.”

  “Well, yes, yes, we are. But there is something you need to know.”

  “Look, Officer Wilks, I’ve already seen the news and talked to my brother-in-law. I think I understand.”

  “No, there is more, Ms. Flynn. If you’ll give me a minute, I have some information that was not released to the press or the rest of the family as of yet.”

  “More information? Uh, okay,” I said, confused as my head raced trying to prepare myself for what he might say before he said it.

  “Well, Ms. Flynn, it seems there was a report of a man swimming in Deadman Cove toward Inner Duck Rock. And there was another report of a man sitting on the rock with the seals later in this morning.”

  “Tom? Do they think it was Tom?”

  “Well, it may have been, but there is no trace of him at this point. The rock isn’t large, and it’s surrounded by cold sea, Ms. Flynn.” He took a breath, preparing himself for the news he needed to pass along. “If he was on the rock, he isn’t now. And since the closest body of land is Monhegan, and no one has seen him there, so we have classified your husband as missing.”

  “Missing? Okay, missing is better than dead,” I said a bit more lighthearted than I meant to come across.

  “But missing isn’t good. And in three days’ time, we will assume him dead and stop our search.”

  “I understand,” I answered with a sob stuck in my throat. “Thank you for your time. If you don’t mind, I’m going to get off the phone now. I have family to contact.”

  “Of course, Ms. Flynn. Please know we are doing our part, and I’ll be in contact if anything else arises.”

  “Thank you, Officer Wilks. I appreciate it.”

  Candy had been hanging on my words trying to make out the rest of the conversation as I spoke to the petty officer.

  “What’d he say?” She urged me to repeat our conversation word-for-word.

  “Basically, they don’t know where Tom is. They have reports of a man swimming to a large rock or island really, but they searched it and he wasn’t there.”

  “Do they think it was Tom?”

  “They aren’t sure. There’s really no way to tell. I mean whoever saw the guy may have just seen a big seal.”

  She caught herself laughing and cut it off.

  “I’m sorry, Laura. I didn’t mean to laugh. But the thought of Tom being confused with a seal was pretty funny,” she said with an apologetic smile. “So, now that you know that, what do we do?”

  “Actually, Candy, do you think you could go downstairs and let everyone know what’s going on? I think I’m going to call Jeanie now, and if you could spread the word, it would cut down on these phone calls.”

  “That I can do,” she said grabbing her coat. “You rest a little if you can, and I’ll swing by later if you want. Brandon can hang out with the kids.”

  “Thanks, but I think I’ll be alright for now. I think I could use a little privacy. And I know how to get you if I need you.”

  “That you do, and with that crowd downstairs, you’ll just need to open the door and shout if you need anything at all.”

  She gave me a hug, told me one more time that she could come back any time if I needed her, and headed down to the bar.

  Now, alone, I faced the fact that while the Coast Guard and his crew may not know where Tom was, I did.

  Seven

  The small islands littering the Atlantic coast off of Maine were great places to fish if you were human and seal alike, and especially if you were a mermaid. The Lunaria spent most of their time in the water between the islands, running with the fish from Monhegan Island north to the much larger Allen Island. In order to protect our fishing and breeding ground, we moved back and forth between the two, basking on the smaller islands and rocks.

  It wasn’t a coincidence that Tom went missing in the same area. The Lunaria had scouts in the human world, and they knew plenty about the fishing boats and the humans who ran them. There was no question that my tribe, Dianna specifically, knew who Tom was and where I ended up.

  The question now was what they wanted with Tom and where they had taken him.

  Unfortunately, there was only one way to find out. As much as I hated the idea, if I wanted to know what happened to Tom, I’d have to go see for myself. That must be what Diana wanted. This was her way of calling me to her. Obviously there was something she wanted from me, most likely something she needed me to do. That was her M.O. after all, getting me to do whatever she wanted by any means necessary. But it hadn’t happened the last time she tried it, and it wasn’t going to happen this time. At least not the way she wanted it to.

  I couldn’t return to the tribe. I had been exiled, and there was a chance I could be killed if I’d misinterpreted the situation. If Tom was missing and it had nothing to do with the Lunaria, I would be sailing into hostile waters. But it Diana was holding my husband, I would never forgive myself for not going to him. Diana could be ruthless when she wanted to be, and humans were by far not her favorite species.

  Mandy had taken Doc with her after hearing the news, hoping to lighten my responsibilities. She loved having Doc around, and while I was happy to loan my puppy out when she asked, I really wanted to snuggle with him as I considered my options.

  As the night wore on, it started to rain again. Not the downpour of the day before, but a soft smattering of rain that glazed the windows and sounded musical rather than menacing.

  I listened, waiting for an answer to come to me. Should I go to Tom, face what I’d avoided our entire life together? Did I
avoid the Lunaria and forfeit my chance to see if they had Tom?

  Soon I realized my options weren’t truly options. I waited long enough, and now the decision was made. There was only one answer.

  I needed to go to Tom.

  My husband had accepted me when I was at my most vulnerable. Dejected by my lover and banished from my home, I entered the human world looking for a place to hide. Massachusetts seemed far enough away to avoid any tie to the tribe, but to still enjoy what I loved about New England. The changes of seasons may not be what all mer savor in the sea, but the seasons brought something special to the ocean. Along with shifts in air and water temperature came changes in fish species and human activity. I enjoyed the transformation of the ocean and deviations from the normal.

  There was the problem with Diana’s demand. I would never have a change again if I’d married Tritonia’s son. My days would be planned for me. Hours sitting in court, amongst his other wives, with the rest of the day spent either tending to my children to trying to conceive was not a schedule I planned to adjust to, but Diana didn’t care about that.

  While there were plenty of other mermaids she could have chosen to fulfill her promise to Tritonia, she chose me. And much like I found out about Tom, I found out about her decision.

  Diana had called a tribal meeting, assembling all of the Lunaria of breeding age or older in order to make her announcement.

  “My sisters, we are facing a time of unrest,” she explained to the tribe. “Each of you has a role in our tribal existence, and now is the time you must fulfill this role. One of you has been selected and will now go forth from the tribe and ensure not only our protection, but also our longevity.

  “Queen Tritonia has no heir beyond the Crowned Prince Minorius, and she seeks to remedy this. While Prince Minorius has six wives now, they hope a mermaid from a female tribe may be the answer to their problem and produce a female eligible to represent the kingdom.

  “The maid chosen for this task should feel honored and esteemed in our tribe. She will be the sole reason our tribe continues in the future as part of the Tritonians and as a protected tribe of the North Atlantic.”

  Cheers went up from the crowd and looks were sent back and forth between mer trying to guess who Diana selected.

  “I wish my congratulations to a highly respected and an especially beautiful mermaid, and I announce the next Tritonian princess and wife of Prince Minorius to be Laura.”

  Eight

  I stood ankle deep in the tidal pools of Southern Point Beach, the spot where Tom proposed, focusing on the jetty light.

  The waves lapped at my legs, cold against the humid air. The rain slapped the water and bounced back, stinging my face and arms. I felt awake, alive.

  As I walked deeper into the dark water, looking at the horizon, the ocean and sky merged into a blue-black mat, calling me, daring me to find where they met. I continued deeper, feeling the sea embrace me, rolling around my waist before I dove to meet it.

  Stretching my arms in front of me, I leaned into the next wave. Its white crest engulfed me. Moving further from the shore, deeper into my one-time home, I kicked hard to propel myself against the incoming tide.

  Fighting the sea had once been second nature. Now I challenged my human instincts to turn to the surface, to fill my lungs with air, to return to the beach. I dove beneath the crashing waves, unable to feel the rain anymore. Instead, the ocean sent forth sharp tendrils of numbing sea water to greet me and welcome me home.

  At the point where most humans would succumb, breathing in and filling their lungs with water, I powered forward. The salt burned my eyes. The cold cramped my muscles. And still I dove down, deeper and yet yards above the ocean floor.

  The beach dropped off suddenly at Southern Point making it an ideal spot for my re-entry into sea society. Even if I regretted my decision and decided to turn around, chances I would survive as a human drastically diminished. The choice was now to survive in my old form or die as a human as the young woman had done years before.

  My scales began to appear in small clusters as I kicked through the powerful water. Holding my legs together, I powered forward, deeper into the ocean. My legs continued to change and before long my metamorphosis was complete, making it easier to move through the current.

  Passing the rocky structure from where the girl through herself, the water moved more rapidly and deepened. The temperature dropped and I realized that as a human I would have faced hypothermia, but as a mer, I felt quite comfortable.

  I swam quickly, shooting through the stirred water in the dark, watching for rocks and other obstacles. I could hear a boat in the distance, the props shuffling the water.

  Closing the distance between home and Lunaria territory led to a surge of memories that I’d since repressed. Considering how dramatic my exit from the tribe, it took quite a bit to continuously remember to forget the event. And considering my feelings about Diana, I was surprised I ever got past those recollections.

  After she announced me as the next wife of Minorius, the requisite claps were heard, as were several rumbling voices and gasps. The tribe faced the same shock I did upon hearing the news. But it wasn’t until I was alone with Diana that I could convey my dismay.

  The tribe eventually fell away mer by mer and Diana and I were left almost alone when I finally approached her.

  “Diana, may I have a minute?” I asked quietly. I didn’t need anyone else to hear my upset. I had no need to fuel the rumors already circulating.

  “Please excuse me, ladies. The princess awaits,” she said as she dismissed them and came over to me. “How can I help you, my dear Laura?”

  Her voice moved along my skin, enticing me with mere words. I felt myself succumbing to her will before she said anything more.

  “Diana, how could you do that? I can’t possibly marry Minorius.” In contrast to her liquid velvet voice, mine came out all squeaks and stutters.

  “I know you weren’t expecting this, but things change, my love. Your tribe needs you to do this. Your queen commands it. There is nothing else to be done.”

  “But I can’t. I can’t be tied to that man. I can’t leave either. And I can’t believe you can make this decision so easily.”

  I knew the agreement between the Lunaria and the Tritonians guaranteed our tribe’s protection, but I was sure they hadn’t requested me specifically. I’m sure Minorius had no idea who I was. That meant the choice of who would be sacrificed sat with Diana.

  But, since Tritonian law required a gender shift each generation in their monarchy, they needed a female to follow Queen Tritonian’s son onto the thrown. Since mer from female tribes only have female offspring, it was surprising they hadn’t come to us earlier for a new wife.

  “I’m not sorry,” she said as we sat together. “Someone needs to go and you are strong enough not only to be away from the tribe, but to bear babies as well. And I can spare you, Laura.”

  Her words sliced through me and I immediately felt somehow paralyzed.

  She continued, “What do you suggest I do if I don’t send you? Should I send Versilla? She’s not able to conceive, and when the Tritonians find that out, we’ll be in far more danger than we are now.”

  “And why can’t she conceive?” I asked. Already knowing the answer, I shot at her bitterly, “Because the Fanurians raped her, almost killed her.”

  “You know I couldn’t stop that.”

  “You could have, Diana. You could have, but you’d have lost the crown. But why fight so hard to keep it? You always say how much you hate the impositions of being queen. How much you hate the fact that you can’t be yourself and wear the crown.”

  “I hate that my position demands I share nothing of my life with anyone else, especially you. I hate that we can’t be together. I hate the neediness of everyone else and how I can’t get a minute of peace. But I’d never turn over the crown to a male faction. And I will wait until a suitable heir is born before I consider turning it over to one of
our own.

  “But what you don’t see, Laura, is that you could give us that heir. If you have a boy, Minorius has his heir. If you have a girl, we have ours. Either way, our tribe continues, and if you do have a girl, Tritonian will release you and send you back to us.”

  She kept explaining, but nothing made me feel better.

  “Options were limited, my love,” she said, reaching for me as I turned away. “And so are yours. Marry him, Laura. Live a charmed life and bear his child. Protect your tribe and honor your queen, and if you won’t, don’t forget that you make the choice to leave me.”

  Nine

  I made my choice quickly and left in the middle of the night. I swam south, feeling the water warm slightly as I approached the Massachusetts coast. Familiar with the area from years of fishing there, I knew Southern Point and slid myself onto the rocks. I sat there in the cool, late-summer air, feeling the briskness of the sea breeze and a slight sting of the spray against my newly formed legs.

  Developing legs was always a sensuous experience to me. I watched my scales turn from their bright, inky blue to a honey color as they bleached before my eyes. Then they slowly turned smooth moments before my ankles separated and my toes lost their webbing. I felt supple and exotic as a human. I held a mystery that no one else knew or shared.

  Legs also reminded me of Diana. We would find a beach free of humans and lie together, kissing and touching in the sand as our bodies transitioned from mer to human. Our tails would slowly change from beautiful fins to strong, elegant legs.

  Diana moved slowly with me. None of her rapid, curt movements existed in our meetings. Those motions belonged to her royal self, not the one we shared. With me she lingered in her own skin, her hands in mine, our lips caressing necks, shoulders, and breasts.

  Our time together, our love, demanded privacy though. Lunarian queens were to remain celibate and focused on their tribe’s needs. Maybe that is why she found it so easy to send me to wed Minorius. Not only would it protect the tribe, but it removed me from her view. She wouldn’t need to create situations allowing her to spend time with me, nor would she need to remind me why we couldn’t be together. Instead, she could continue her life, her reign, further protected from a meaningless war and free from any temptation I may bring.